


Start of Something

by Savvylicious



Category: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Cadet Zack is the cutest Zack, Genesis being a douche, Mimicking, Other, Poor Angeal, Pre-Crisis, Zack has a terrible country drawl I'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-15
Updated: 2015-01-15
Packaged: 2018-03-07 16:40:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3177226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Savvylicious/pseuds/Savvylicious
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tumblr request. Zack sees Genesis for the First time in real life. He's not very impressed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Start of Something

**Author's Note:**

> [ An older fic. No plot. I am always open to requests. ]

“Good morning, cadets.”

“Sir!”

“Now that you’ve all been assigned your classes and know your schedules today, I’d like to officially welcome you into the program.” There was a muffled rumble of approval and pride and Angeal waited patiently for the room to once again fall into a silence. “SOLDIER isn’t about flashy guns, or flaunting militaristic rank. It isn’t about how strong you will come to be. SOLDIER is about honour, and justice. It’s a force to protect. It’s a force to conquer. It’s a force that drives people like you to take up arms and fight for a noble cause.”

He began walking up and down their line, arms folded across his chest. “As most of you know, I am Commander Angeal Hewley, SOLDIER First Class and the right hand of the Director. I take immense pride in this program and every person in it. From now on, I expect you to do the same. This compound is your home now. You will treat it and all its occupants with respect and most importantly you will all—”

“So, these are the new scrawny kids they managed to scrape up off the side of the street?”

The room turned its attention to the ceiling, where the vermillion Rhapsodos himself reclined, draped precariously on a beam with a book in hand and a rather unpleasant smile on his face. Had Angeal been younger, he would have smiled and rolled his eyes at Genesis’ antics. Instead he sent a rather curt glare to his childhood friend and raised his eyebrows in a manner that beseeched the poet to come join him on the ground. With an over-exaggerated sigh, Genesis closed his book and drifted down to Angeal’s side rather lazily, offering a thin apologetic smile for having interrupted.

“Now as I was saying—”

“Oh Angeal, you’re giving them the speech? Here, allow me.” Clearing his throat and moving to stand in a position that was clearly better balanced by a larger man, Genesis put a hand to his chest and performed his best imitation of Angeal, “If you want to be in SOLDIER, you have to have pride. Embrace your dreams, and protect your honor.”

The cadets began to giggle amongst themselves and Angeal himself looked very unimpressed. “Thank you, Genesis. But that’s enough.”

“You’re never any fun. Why is it you always get to play with the new cadets and I’m stuck with the deskwork, hmm?”

_Because you dislike anyone that disagrees with you, you’re hazardous and quite malicious with anyone you don’t happen to like, and you don’t have enough patience or a long enough attention span to train anyone that isn’t already an expert._

“That’s just the way Director Deusericus wants it run Genesis…” was Angeal’s mumbled reply, only loud enough for the two of them to hear, “Now would you please let me get back to the orientation?”

But Genesis had already left his side and made his way over to the line of boys, a calculating look on his face and one hand on his chin. “Too skinny. Too nice. Too weak. Not pretty enough—”

Angeal had never pinched between his brows harder.

“I can’t even take this one seriously— What’s your name?”

“E-Essai sir…”

”Riiiight, you’ll be dead in the first month. And you?”

“S-S-Se-Sebas….”

”Oh dear, you won’t even make it till the end of the day.”

Angeal was on his way to pull Genesis away and stop his terrorizing when a pint-sized cadet with the wildest hair he’d ever seen stepped forward and out of line, arms crossed behind his back and looking rather cheerful despite the now fearful air of the room.

“Pardon for interruptin’ sir, but isn’t it up to us how far we go?”

Interest piqued, Genesis straightened and turned to examine the kid, one thin brow raising with disdain. “And just whom are you?”

“Zack Fair, sir.”

Angeal would compare Genesis’ gait to that of a cat’s. He never really walked per say, as it was more like that of a slink or a prowl, and the way he stalked over to the black haired boy made him feel even more wary than he already was. Genesis was one of his best friends, but it was no secret amongst them that sometime in their late teens, Genesis had become slightly unhinged.

“Zack Fair? Short for Zachary I presume?”

There was a subtle pause from the kid, as if he only just now realised the danger he was in, and against his better judgement he decided to correct the older man. “Zackariah, actually…”

For a long while, there was silence. Genesis’ intense blue eyes seemed to bore a hole right through his skull, and subconsciously Zack felt his shoulders curl. His smile faded into a concerned frown.

”Remembered by the goddess.”

“Huh?”

”Zackariah means remembered by goddess. Is it your wish to be remembered?”

“Uhm… I wanna… I wanna be a hero?”

Angeal had since joined Genesis’ side and was gazing down as well at the poor, dwarfed cadet. Partly to make sure that his friend didn’t end up maiming the boy, and partly because he was interested by Zack’s response. He hadn’t been training cadets for very long, but he’d never heard one use that term as their reason for joining.

”Why is that, I wonder?” Genesis murmured, his expression turning bemused.

“Uhm… ‘Cause it’s what y’all are. An’ I figured that if I wanted to be somethin’ good, I might as well aim t’be as good as y’all are…?”

Zack’s faint country drawl had Angeal smiling and Genesis looking sour. He clearly wasn’t even close to sixteen years old, but it wasn’t as if old man ShinRa cared that kids were getting shot, so long as he won this war and had a power of his own. With one last long stare in Zack’s bright violet eyes and tanned face, still round with youth, Genesis straightened and clapped a hand on Angeal’s pauldron, preening his hair nonchalantly.

”Pathetic as they all are, I’m sure you’ll do good with them ‘Geal. You always do.”

Angeal couldn’t help the fond roll of his eyes this time and gently shrugged the other off, nudging Zack gently back into line. “Now then, as I was saying…”

As Angeal went back into his welcoming speech, Zack leaned forward a bit and peeked over at Genesis who’d come to rest on the far wall. He felt like he’d just passed some important kind of test, and even though Genesis and Angeal weren’t looking directly at him anymore, he had a strong feeling that both were going to be paying a lot of attention to him in the near future.


End file.
